Glee – Season 4 Episode and Song Guide

Season 4:

4×01 ‘The New Rachel’

With the Seniors gone, New Directions needs to find new members. The audition sheet is quickly filled up thanks to the groups new found popularity due to the Nationals win. Vocal Adrenaline star, Wade, transfers to McKinley and joins the glee club. Wade, Blaine, Tina, and Brittany compete against each other for the chance to fill Rachel’s spot as the star of the club. Artie acts as judge and declares Blaine the winner. At the auditions for the club, a student named Jack shows great promise, but when Will cuts his song short Jack becomes angry and knocks over a music stand. Will finds out that Jack is Puck’s half-brother and attempts to reach out to him, but Jack rejects his efforts. In the end, Marley, the talented daughter of one of the cafeteria lunch ladies, is the only new member added to New Directions.

In New York, Rachel begins her classes at NYADA and finds that things are not as easy as she thought they would be, especially when she lands on the bad side of her dance instructor, Miss July. She begins a friendship with an older student named Brody, but still misses everyone in Ohio. Encouraged by Blaine and his father, Kurt moves to New York without a plan and reunites with Rachel.

4×02 ‘Britney 2.0’

Due to her failing grades, Brittany is kicked off the Cheerios and falls into a depression. In an effort to help her out of her funk, Will gives the Glee kids the assignment ‘Britney 2.0.’ Brittany continues her downward spiral, mimicking the real Britney Spears, until she is finally able to make her comeback after a heart to heart with Sam. Marley develops a crush on Jake, but is warned to stay away from him since he has a reputation for being a womanizer. The two seem to have a connection, but Marley ends up with a broken heart when she learns that he is dating Kitty. Thanks, in part, to Marley’s friendship and a surprise visit from Puck, Jake is convinced to join the glee club. Dance teacher, Cassie July, continues to give Rachel a hard time, so she enlists Brody to help her show Cassie what she can do. After things erupt between Rachel and Cassie, they manage to have a mature conversation with one another and come to an understanding. Brody shows up to Kurt and Rachel’s new place to surprise her with flowers. He reveals that he has feelings for her, but she rejects him because of her lingering love for Finn. He tells her that no matter what they are talking about, he will always be thinking of kissing her.

4×03 ‘Makeover’

It’s election time at McKinley again and this year Britney and Artie team up to run against Blaine and Sam. After the two pairs go head to head in a debate it is Blaine and Sam (‘Blam’) who win the title. Will is finding inspiration for the glee club difficult now that he has achieved his dream of winning a National title. He decides to take Sue’s advice and apply for a national blue ribbon committee to improve arts education. Back in New York, Kurt gets an internship at Vogue.com working under Isabelle Wright. Kurt has the idea to make a music video giving Rachel a make over and, with Isabelle’s help, the high ups at Vogue decide to use the idea and give Kurt credit. Caught up in the excitement of all that is happening, Kurt declines a phone call from a very lonely Blaine. Bolstered by the confidence her new look has given her, Rachel invites Brody over for dinner. The two begin to kiss when there is a knock at the door and Finn is standing on the other side.

4×04 ‘Break Up’

Rachel shows Finn around New York and NYADA after he surprises her on her doorstep. When he sees how happy she is he feels lost and leaves without saying goodbye. Rachel follows him to Lima where she tells him that he will always be her first love, but she “can’t do this anymore” and she breaks up with him. Blaine surprises Kurt in New York and confesses that he cheated on him. Kurt is heart broken and goes silent leaving Blaine uncertain as to whether or not they have broken up. Santana visits Brittany and tells her that she will always love her the most, but that long distance relationships are too difficult, especially at their age, and the two break up. Will gets accepted to the Blue Ribbon Panel in Washington and wants Emma to take a sabbatical from her job to join him, but she upset by the idea of leaving her work to sit in a hotel room by herself. Will wants to discuss it further, and Emma leaves saying that they already have discussed it, he just didn’t like her answer.

4×05 ‘The Role You Were Born to Play’

It’s time to audition for the McKinley school musical, Grease, and Artie recruits Finn, Mercedes, and Mike to come back and help direct. When Blaine has a meltdown at the end of his audition and proclaims he can’t play the role of Danny because he is too heartbroken over his break up with Kurt, Finn sets out to find new talent and discovers football player, Ryder. Wade decides to audition as Unique for the role of Rizzo and Sue declares her intention to wage war against the casting when he is indeed given the role. Marley and Ryder are cast in the lead roles of Sandy and Danny. Emma agrees to go with Will to Washington even though she doesn’t want to, but when Coach Beiste reminds her that she is still her own person she confesses to Will that she doesn’t want to go and he is understanding. Will tells Finn that he will be leaving for three months and asks him to fill in as director of New Directions while he is gone.

4×06 ‘Glease’

Will finally tells New Directions that he will be leaving for a few months and that Finn will be taking over in his absence. Wade’s parents meet with Figgins and decide to pull him from the musical due to concerns for his safety, so Santana is called in to fill in as Rizzo. Kitty secretly alters Marley’s Sandy costume so that Marley is convinced that she is gaining weight. Ryder offers Marley support and the two share a kiss before going on stage. The kids perform Grease to a standing ovation.

Rachel has her first audition for an off-broadway role and asks Brody to help her prepare. She and Kurt decide that they want to travel to Lima to see their friends perform in the musical and Cassie helps fund their trip. While they are gone Cassie gets Brody to be her T.A. and they end up sharing an intimate moment, which she gloats to Rachel about over the phone. Rachel and Kurt realize that Lima is no longer home.

4×07 ‘Dynamic Duets’

Finn finds inspiration from the McKinley comic book club and decides to pair up enemies within the glee club for duets. Kitty is paired with Marley and Jake is paired with Ryder. Kitty uses the assignment as a way to push Marley further in her bulimia under the guise of embracing her ‘girl power.’ Jake and Ryder fight for the attention of Marley, but when Finn forces them to share their inner fears with each other they become unlikely friends. Ryder admits to Jake that he has difficulty reading. Ryder is later tested and told that he has dyslexia. When Ryder is forced to cancel a date with Marley so that he can study she draws on her new empowerment and asks Jake out on a date. The Warblers steal the New Directions trophy from Nationals and attempt to steal Blaine back. After a heart to heart with Sam, Blaine decides to stay and the two manage to take back their trophy.

4×08 ‘Thanksgiving’

Quinn, Santana, Mercedes, Mike, and Puck all return to Lima for Thanksgiving and help New Directions prepare for Sectionals. They are each paired with a member of New Directions to mentor and get caught up in the high school drama. Rachel confronts Brody about his relationship with Cassie. He reminds her that they are not an exclusive couple. She invites him to have Thanksgiving with her and Kurt at their place while Kurt invites Isabelle and it turns into an impromptu party. Kurt calls Blaine and the two have a nice conversation and agree to meet up over Christmas. New Directions compete against the Warblers at Sectionals. Just as they are finishing their first number Marley passes out on stage.

4×09 ‘Swan Song’

After Marley collapses on stage at Sectionals the team leaves the stage to see to her. They end up being disqualified from Sectionals and the Warblers win. Depressed by the early end of the competition season, most of the members leave the club and attempt to join in other extracurricular activities. In the end, though, they all come together again to continue the glee club.

Rachel is given one of the highly coveted invites to perform at the NYADA Winter Showcase. Kurt sends in an audition tape to Carmen Tibideaux, but when he goes to ask her about it she tells him that she is not accepting him because he does not have any depth to his performances. Rachel performs two songs at the Winter Showcase to standing ovations and ends up winning. After her performances, Carmen announces that Kurt will be the next performer. A very stunned Kurt finally shows her the heart she was looking for in his performance and he is admitted to NYADA.

4×10 ‘Glee, Actually’

Artie grows frustrated with being in a wheelchair and has a dream reminiscent of It’s a WonderfulLife, which he wakes up from with a new appreciation for the role his chair plays in his life. Jake and Puck go on a roadtrip to L.A. where Puck admits his life isn’t as great as he would have people believe. He decides to return to Lima with Jake and the two brothers arrange a family dinner with their mothers. Sam and Brittany confide in each other in their belief of the Mayan Apocalypse. Sue draws Millie, Marley’s mother, in the McKinley staff Secret Santa. Sue overhears a conversation between Millie and Marley about how they can’t even afford a tree because they must save up for Marley’s eating disorder treatments, so she breaks into their home and gives them a tree full of gifts and enough money for the treatments. Burt surprises Kurt in New York for Christmas. He tells Kurt that he has been diagnosed with prostate cancer, but that they caught it early and his chances of survival are high. He then surprises Kurt by revealing that he has brought Blaine to New York. Kurt and Blaine take the first steps towards mending their relationship and growing as friends.

4×11 ‘Sadie Hawkins’

The student council decides to throw the first ever Sadie Hawkins dance at McKinley. Tina asks Blaine, who she has started to develop feelings for. Blaine rejects her offer at first because he has a crush on Sam, but he later agrees to go with her as her friend. Sam develops a conspiracy theory that something is going on with the Warblers and works together with Blaine to uncover that the Warblers have been using performance enhancing drugs. This knowledge could disqualify the Warblers from Sectionals and allow New Directions to go to Regionals in their place.

Kurt struggles to find his place at NYADA, which he discovers is much like high school. He meets and older student named Adam and, encouraged by Rachel, asks him out. Adam agrees and gives Kurt his number. Rachel and Brody continue to grow closer with him sleeping over and Rachel telling Kurt she’s in love. After being late for a dinner date Brody comments that he might move to Rachel’s side of town and Rachel suggests that he move in with her instead.

4×12 ‘Naked’

When the Warblers are use of performance enhancing drugs is exposed, New Directions scrambles to raise money to get them to Regionals. Tina comes up with the idea of making a “Men of McKinley” calendar. After learning of his abysmal SAT scores, Sam becomes obsessed with his body, convinced it is the only way he can make a living. Blaine and Ms. Pillsbury help him to see that he does have other options, even with his scores. Rachel is given the leading role in a student film, but is torn when she learns the role requires her to be topless. At first she agrees to do the role, but when the time comes to disrobe she finds she is unable to do it.

4×13 ‘Diva’

In order to bolster New Direction’s competitive spirit, Finn decides to hold a “diva-off.” Tina uses the opportunity to try to come to terms with her growing feelings for Blaine and she ends up winning the competition. Santana finds out about the romance between Brittany and Sam and comes to Lima in an attempt to break them up. Sue discovers that she has dropped out of school and offers her a job with the Cheerios, but instead, Santana decides to pursue her dreams in New York City with Rachel and Kurt. Finn tries to help an overwhelmed Emma with her wedding plans, but when she has a meltdown he kisses her and then makes a hasty retreat. Meanwhile, Kurt grows weary of Rachel’s diva attitude and challenges her to duel. When Kurt ends up winning Rachel loses her confidence, but Kurt reassures her and pushes her to audition for a revival of ‘Funny Girl.’